UAH men's basketball bounces back with win at Union

JACKSON, Tenn. – The ninth-ranked University of Alabama in Huntsville men’s basketball team bounced back from its Saturday setback on the strength of four scorers in double figures and defeated host Union on Thursday night by a 79-62 score. UAH improves to 13-2 (6-1 Gulf South Conference), and the Bulldogs slip to 3-11 (1-5 GSC).

It was a strong second half that propelled the Chargers to victory as the team outscored the opposition by 15 points in the period.

Union held an advantage early in the half as the Bulldogs were in front 34-32 with 17:53 left, but UAH ripped off a stellar 29-8 stretch that was punctuated by a Greg Gardner triple to give the Chargers complete control of the contest at 61-42 just before the midway point of the half.

The lead would grow to as many as 24 for the visitors down the stretch en route to the big victory.

The momentum for the strong second 20 minutes was generated by a key shot at the end of the first half.

Union had grabbed a 28-27 advantage with 23 seconds left until the end of half, but Gardner dished it to Jaime Smith who buried a 3-pointer near the expiration of the clock to send the Chargers into the locker room with a 30-28 advantage.

Smith finished the night was a team-best 19 points, while Zane Campbell was strong with 15. Hitting a pair of 3-pointers, Ronnie Mack scored 11 and collected a game-high eight rebounds, and Xavier Baldwin chipped in with 10 to round out the double-figure scorers.

Gardner matched Campbell with a team-high four assists while the freshman also grabbed five boards.

Rebounding from the tough shooting night the Chargers had against Delta State, UAH connected on 47.2 percent of its shots including a 10-for-25 showing from beyond the arc. Union shot the ball at a 39.7 percent clip and outrebounded the Chargers 36-32.

UAH protected the basketball as it committed just seven turnovers, and the team capitalized on Union’s 10 miscues by turning them into 17 points.

The Chargers will now look to string together victories as they host rival North Alabama on Saturday night at Kelly Court at Spragins Hall. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.